Steven Universe: Dawn of the Dragon
by ReptileEdge
Summary: Steven finally discovers what has been inside the chest his mother hid in Lion’s mane. Inside he finds a large orb of some kind. But later, it becomes a large asian dragon that’s centuries old. How will having a dragon around change Steven’s life?
1. Prologue

**Hey guys, ReptileEdge here with another fanfic for you. **

**Some of you are probably thinking 'DUDE! Why are you starting another story when you're still working on other stories?!' That's easy. I'm bored.**

**Hopefully I get some inspiration for new chapters while you're all patiently waiting for me to update. **

**Anyways, I came up with this idea because I had Steven Universe and dragons on the mind. **

**Ok, let's get on with it, and hopefully you like it. **

**Also, coming up with how Rose meets the dragon in this story was really difficult to come up with.**

**I don't own anything, except for the dragon. **

_... _

_Thousands of years ago, during the beginning of the rebellion... _

_Rose Quartz, leader of a group of rebel gems known as the crystal gems, along with Pearl and Garnet, had received word of a homeworld experiment taking place._

_Apparently, homeworld gems have stumbled upon some sort of large orb that was radiating an odd energy of some kind. _

_The diamonds believe that this energy could be harnessed for their empire. Used for what exactly, has yet to be decided. For now. _

_They set up a temporary testing area in a secluded part of the prime kindergarten. _

_The diamonds had peridot scientists to examine and try to extract the energy from the orb, and the scientists have quartz soldiers to protect them if the rebels were to attack._

_Speaking of rebels. Rose, Pearl, and Garnet are currently hiding behind some rocks, and watching from afar. _

_At the moment, homeworld scientists were merely observing the orb's energy readings. _

_"Readings show that the unknown energy from the orb is currently stable." Said an era one peridot. "Commencing energy extraction experiment, test 1." _

_"Rose, what should we do?" Whispered Pearl. _

_"I don't know." Rose whispered back. _

_The peridot scientist activated what looked like a giant two pronged trident crackling with electrical static. The two points of the device touched the surface of the orb. _

_"Activating extraction." Said the peridot, activating the machine. _

_But when the machine attempted to extract the mysterious energy, the orb began to spark with electrical static, and caused the machine to explode with a surge of energy. _

_"What?! How did that even happen?!" Said the shocked peridot scientist, looking through her readings to see what went wrong. _

_But what happens next, is what will change the crystal gems history. _

_A loud booming voice, full of fury, echoed all around them. _

_**"Who DARES to tamper with my power?!" **Boomed the voice, startling both the homeworld gems and crystal gems. _

_The leading scientist looked around her, frantically searching for the source of the voice. _

_"Who are you?! Where are you?! Show yourself!" She demanded, the other scientists and quartz guards just as startled as she is. _

_**"Over here, fool!" **The voice boomed again. _

_Everyone's attention was then focused onto the orb. It pulsed each time it spoke. _

_**"Now that I have your attention now. Who are you, and where am I?" **Said the orb._

_The leading scientist was rather confused. __The orb spoke? _

_"Rose, did the orb just speak?" Asked Pearl. _

_"Apparently." Said Rose. _

_"Looks that way." Said Garnet. _

_"What is the meaning of this?" Demanded the lead scientist. _

_The orb continued to pulse each time it spoke. _

_**"I should be asking you. Now answer the question! Who are you people, and where am I?!" **Demanded the orb. _

_"Who are you to demand answers from us?! Just in the name of the diamonds are you?!" Demanded the peridot. _

_**"If you insist." **Said the orb. _

_Said orb began to glow brightly with a mysterious mist surrounding it. Then a serpentine figure made of light began to grow in size as it swirled upwards, giving off an animalistic rumble, and then finally taking shape as it stood on four legs. _

_The light dissipated, and in the orb's place stood a large reptile of some kind. _

_**"Now. I'll ask again, and this time you'll answer. Who are you, and where am I?" **Asked the mysterious reptile, it's eyes narrowed. _

_Before the peridot could respond, a quartz soldier stepped forward. "We don't need to answer to the likes of whatever you are, or whoever you are, you monster!" She said. _

_The serpentine reptile growled in annoyance. **"So be it."** _

_The creature reared its head back, took a deep breath, and unleashed a fire ball amongst the homeworld gems. _

_The gems that couldn't avoid the blast, were poofed and retreated into their gemstones. The other scrambled to try and fend off the beast. _

_The crystal gems gazed in fear of the creature that was mopping the floor with the homeworld gems. The rebels stopped staring and hid back behind the rocks. _

_"What IS this thing?" Rose Asked to know one in particular. _

_"Rose? I think we should leave. This creature looks too dangerous!" Pear pleaded. _

_Rose would've agreed, but Garnet spoke up. _

_"Guys. It's gone quiet." Said the fusion. _

_They peaked from behind the rocks to see the area littered with gemstones, but the creature was nowhere in site. _

_"Huh? Where did it go?" Asked Rose. _

_**"Right here." **_

_"AH!" _

_The gems yelped in surprise. The beast was standing right behind them. It's eyes narrowed aggressively, yet stared at the rebels with curiosity. _

_**"It would appear I missed a few of you." **It Said. _

_"W-w-wait! Hold on a second! We come in peace!" Said Rose. "We mean you no harm." _

_The beast snorted a puff of hot air at them like an angry bull. _

_**"How do I know you're not lying?" **Said the creature. _

_"Allow us to prove it to you then." Said Rose. _

_The creature placed a finger and thumb under its chin, considering the option for them to prove it. _

_**"Hmmm... very well then. But first, who are you, and what are your names?" **Asked the large reptile. _

_"My name is Rose Quartz. This is Pearl and Garnet. We, along with others, are a rebel group of gems known as the crystal gems. We protect the earth from homeworld, and give gems a chance to be themselves." Said Rose. "May I ask who you are?" _

_**"My name is Meldar. The last dragon."**_

_..._

_From that day forward, the lives of the crystal gems forever changed when they came in contact with their new ally... a dragon. _

... 

**Ok, this one took awhile to make. Also, I didn't give a description to the orb or the dragon because I was still thinking about color palettes and designs for them. So for the time being, in this chapter I decided to just keep the descriptions ambiguous until next chapter. **

**Anyways, if you guys like it, please review.**


	2. Chapter 1 The Dragon Returns

**Hey guys, ReptileEdge here with another chapter. Now, I know many of you who have read my other stories are anxiously waiting for more chapters. I'm having some writers block on a couple of them, and my updates are rather inconsistent. **

**If I know what to write for what story I won't burn myself out as much. **

**So everyone is gonna have to bare with me here and be patient. Believe me, I've been there when it comes to waiting on new chapters. **

**Anyways, response time. **

**Guest: I'm not exactly sure how powerful the dragon is. I'm still debating it. Also, I have been wondering myself if I should give him the ability to breathe other elements as well. I think I'll do it. Sounds cool. **

**Now, as for the dragon itself. I figured out it's colors and design. I even figured out a brief backstory for him. But I gotta say, coming up with his name wasn't easy. But then I thought up of the word emerald and rearranged the letters. **

**I think the name works pretty well in my opinion. **

**Also, before I forget. This takes place in season one, sometime before Warp Tour, and I won't be using every episode unless I feel like it's important to the story. So some episodes may or may not happen. It depends. Some episodes will change a bit due to Meldar's involvement. **

**But enough chit chat. Let's get on with the story. **

**I don't own anything except the dragon. **

... 

Thousands of years later, in the present...

It's been thousands of years since the rebellion.

Thousands of years since Rose Quartz and the rebels met a creature that was last of his kind.

Thirteen years since Rose Quartz gave up her form for her hybrid child. Her son, Steven Quartz Universe.

It's been some time since Steven discovered the pocket dimension inside Lion's mane, and found a tape his mom made for him.

It's been a few days since then. But there was something bugging him lately.

Ever since he went into Lion's mane, he's been having the same odd dream each night for the past four nights.

It never changed. Last night, he had the same dream again. But this time the end of his dream changed with one minor detail.

The dream went on as usual. He was in one area then the next.

First he found himself standing next to an active volcano, hearing something roar from the top of the volcano.

Then, he was in another location. This time on top of a snow covered mountain, with something serpentine flying above him within the clouds.

The next one, he was in a lush green jungle with a black tiger with green stripes and a silver underside standing before him.

The fourth place he was transported to was in a boat somewhere in the middle of the ocean at night. Something bumps the boat, he looks over the side, and sees glowing green eyes.

Then the location changed to a cavern filled with crystals. At the end of the cavern was an orb made of light.

The location changed again. For this one, Steven was floating in the eye of an electrical storm. Above the howling wind, and the booming sound of the thunder, he heard a loud roar all around him.

The next one was Pearl's favorite tree. Completely intact and not cut in half. Pink petals and all of its majestic glory. Some of the pink petals from the tree were carried off in the wind. Steven looked down and noticed a red rose in front of the tree, which he knows wasn't there before.

The thing that changed with his dream occurrences, was that afterwards, Steven found himself in Lion's mane again. But his attention was on the weird wooden chest.

He never really paid attention to it. But here he was, staring at it.

At least he could breathe here. Even though it's a dream.

The inside of the chest glowed, and he heard a tiger's roar come from the inside of it, which was followed by another roar, but it didn't sound like anything he's heard before.

Then he heard a deep voice as the light became almost blinding.

**"I... am the last of my kind... I am the emerald spark within a burning fire... I am... Meldar."**

Afterwards, Steven woke up in a cold sweat.

Right now it's two in the afternoon, and the end of his dream still bugged him. The gems were still out on a mission, so he couldn't ask them.

He didn't know who else to ask.

It was most likely gem related. But the only ones who know about gem related stuff weren't here at the moment, and he had no idea when they would be back.

Lion was who knows where. So he couldn't go inside his mane to get the chest.

But then again, he had no clue if whatever that's inside the chest was something good or something bad.

Luckily, he didn't have to wait for long for answers. The warp pad glowed, and standing on the warp pad was the crystal gems.

Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl.

Steven got up from his seat as quick as a flash, and dashed to the gems.

"Guys! Guys!"

"Easy there, Steve-man! Where's the fire?" Said Amethyst.

"Four days ago I had this crazy dream. I thought it was nothing but a random dream, but it kept repeating the next couple of days. But last night, something different happened at the end of the dream, and I don't know what it means! I think it might be gem related!" Steven frantically explained.

"Calm down Steven. Just tell us what your dream was about." Garnet said calmly, who kneeled and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Steven inhaled deeply in a comical fashion, and then explained everything that happened in his dream.

The locations.

The roar.

The serpentine figure.

The tiger.

The glowing eyes.

And finally, what happened with the chest.

The glow, the roar, and the voice.

"And that's what happened." Said Steven.

Everyone, except Amethyst, had their jaws dropped in shock.

Amethyst however was confused.

"Uh, guys? You ok?" Asked Amethyst, waving her hand in front of their faces.

"Uh. Steven? Where's Lion now?" Asked Pearl.

Steven shrugged. "I have no idea. He just leaves to do whatever he wants." As if on cue, a portal opens and out steps Lion. "Oh, there he is."

... couple minutes later...

Steven managed to drag the chest out of Lion's mane. It wasn't _that_ heavy, but it definitely had some weight to it.

"Ok, got it. Here's the chest." Said Steven.

Pearl approached the chest, not believing what she was seeing. She kneeled and placed a hand on top of it.

"I. I-I haven't seen this chest in thousands of years." She said.

"Really? Do you know what's inside it?" Asked Steven.

Pearl seemed a little hesitant, but answered anyways.

"Well... it's supposed to contain a valued ally of the crystal gems." Said Pearl.

Steven suddenly got stars in his eyes. "Really?! Who were they?!" He asked with excitement.

Garnet spoke up. "His name is the same as the one in your dream. Meldar, the last dragon."

Steven gasped with shock and surprise. "Mom had a DRAGON?!"

"Woah-ho-ho-ho-ho-hoooooooooooo! That's got to be the coolest thing I've ever heard all day!" Said Amethyst. She looked at the chest and began to think for a second.

"Waaaaaaaaait a minute. How big was this dragon anyway? I mean, if the chest is supposed to contain it, then how big was it? Were they a power house in a small package or something?" Amethyst questioned with curiosity.

"On the contrary, Amethyst. Meldar was a rather large reptile packed with many powers and abilities. Becoming smaller was one of them." Pearl explained.

Steven was practically beaming with excitement.

"So, why is he in a chest?" Asked Amethyst.

"Oh, well... you see... Meldar has been severely injured during the rebellion, so Rose hid him away to recover, and so no one could steal him while doing so. We just didn't know where Rose hid the chest. But she did give me the key." Said Pearl, whose gem glowed and brought forth a black key with the key's teeth being green.

"She said that key would act as a locator incase the chest ever got lost or stolen. But it hadn't worked in ages, so I assumed it was faulty." She continued. But then the key began to vibrate rapidly and launched itself out of Pearl's grip, and straight into the chest's keyhole. This of course shocked Pearl. "Uuuuuuuh. Never mind, I guess."

"Soooooooo... do we open it or what?" Asked Amethyst.

"I suppose." Said Pearl. "But we should probably do this outside, just in case."

"Agreed." Said Garnet.

"Just in case what?" Asked Steven.

"It would be best to just show you." Said Garnet.

... one moment later...

Everyone is now outside on the beach.

Pearl turned the key, and unlocked the chest. When she opened it, everyone looked inside. Steven and Amethyst were expecting a dragon, but instead...

"Awe what?! The heck is that?" Asked a disappointed Amethyst.

Inside the chest wasn't a dragon.

Inside is a green orb that looked like it was made out of an emerald, roughly the size of a bowling ball.

Steven picked up the orb from its confined space.

"Is this what's left of him?" Asked a confused Steven.

"No, that actually is Meldar. In his dragon pearl form." Explained Pearl.

"Whoa!" Said Steven, stars in his eyes. "What kind of dragon is he?"

Suddenly, the orb began to spark with electrical static, causing Steven to drop it.

But before it could hit the sand, it hovered just a foot above the sand.

The static ceased, and the orb began to glow. Emerald green mist began to form and swirl around the orb as it glowed brighter and brighter.

Within the mist, the orb took the form of a serpentine like figure. The figure swirled upwards and began to take on a more beastly reptile shape, and the mist rose higher with it. The figure gave off an animalistic growl as it rose higher, until the figure stopped.

Whatever it was, it's green eyes glowed as it hovered in the air.

Then with a mighty roar, the mist immediately dissipated, and it revealed what was hidden within the emerald clouds.

A large Asian Dragon with black scales, green tiger stripes, silver scales on its underside, green eyes with black pupils, an extended serpent-like body, four legs with five green talon-like claws, green spikes running down its spine to its spiked tail, sharp teeth, a forked tongue, and two pairs of green springbok horns on the back of its head.

**"Meldar rises again!"** It shouted to the skies with a bellowing voice.

... 

**Took me a couple of days, but I got this chapter out. **

**In case you didn't know, the locations in Steven's dream are meant to represent Meldar's elemental abilities. **

**Also, Meldar isn't a normal Asian dragon. He's actually a hybrid. No, he's not half gem like Steven. It'll be explained more in the next chapter. **

**Review if you're liking it so far.**


	3. Chapter 2 Introductions

**Hey guys, I'm back with another chapter. **

**Man has it been awhile since I've done a chapter for this story.**

**I REALLY should've told you guys sooner, but my main focus at the moment is my other story Marco Diaz: Rodan Reborn. Hence why there hasn't been an update to this story yet, I apologize for it. **

**Now let's get to the responses: **

**Guest: Yes, Meldar has powers of fire, water, ice, electricity, and earth. Originally the part of Steven's dream where he's in a jungle with a black tiger is supposed to represent camouflage, but now I'm not sure. It's been awhile since I've worked on this story, so I'm a little rusty with this story. I'm still keeping the camouflage ability, but I'm still debating the plant thing. **

**Speaking of debating, I've been thinking about giving Meldar a couple of musical numbers because there's a lot of singing in Steven Universe. I also might change the rating to T, but it depends on where this story goes.**

**Anyways, let's get this over with. **

**I don't own anything except the dragon. **

...

The crystal gems stood there on the beach in silent shock at what, or more accurately who, they were seeing. Hovering in mid air is a large Asian dragon with western dragon features. But minus the wings of course.

Meldar. The last dragon.

After not seeing the hulking reptile in such a long time, his intimidating appearance was almost overwhelming for both Garnet and Pearl. But as for Steven and Amethyst, they're completely stoked! They've only heard of dragons from myths and legends, they never actually thought that they would ever see one!

Meldar gently touched the ground with ease, his long tail slowly swaying side to side. He cranes his neck side to side, popping it as he did, and took a deep breath before exhaling through his sharp toothed maw.

**"Ah, fresh air. Soft sandy beach. Salty sea breeze. Temple built into the cliff... with a house?" **Meldar began to list off some of the things in his surroundings, but was confused by the sight of a house built into the temple. He then looked towards beach city and saw the various buildings and such. **"Human settlements? But much more advanced?" **He questioned out loud, tilting his head in curiosity.

Steven couldn't contain his excitement at the sight of a real dragon right in front of him. So he shouted "Giant dragon!" Unintentionally startling him.

**"GAH! What the?!"**

Meldar tensed up once he heard the unfamiliar voice. He looked down to see two complete strangers, but also two familiar faces.

**"Garnet? Pearl?"**

"Long time no see." Garnet Said with a small smile.

"Welcome back." Pearl greeted with a welcoming tone.

**"Ah, it's good to see familiar faces! ****How long has it been since I've been out of commission?" **Meldar asked.

"Over five thousand years." Said Garnet.

Meldar's green eyes practically popped out of his head.

**"Five thousand?!" **He exclaimed in shock, **"Please tell me you're joking." **

"I'm afraid not, Meldar." Pearl Said sympathetically.

**"I knew I was seriously injured, but I didn't think it was THAT serious. What the hell was I hit with?" **Said Meldar, mumbling the last part to himself.

His attention was then drawn to the two strangers.

**"Who the heck are these two?" **He asked, lowering his head closer to Steven and Amethyst.

Meldar had his guard up as he eyed them suspiciously.

**"Are you friend or foe?" **He Asked with a growl, baring his teeth.

"Easy there, tough guy. We're friends, trust me." Said Amethyst, not too unfazed by the dragon's display of aggression.

"It's true! We're all friends here." Steven said in his usual enthusiastic mood.

Meldar narrowed his eyes at the two as hummed in thought. He sensed no lies or deceit, so it was safe to say that they're being truthful.

**"Very well then. Now, who are you?" **He asked.

"I'm Steven Universe, and this is Amethyst."

"Yo." Amethyst said casually.

**"Yes, hi. Wait a minute." **Meldar began looking around for something, or someone.

**"Where's Rose?" **He asked.

The gems tensed up a little. They weren't sure how the dragon before them would handle the news.

"She's... no longer with us." Said Garnet.

Meldar's eyes widened in shock.

**"I'm sorry to hear that. If you don't mind me asking, what happened to her?" **Asked Meldar.

"Long story short, she fell in love with a human, had a kid, but had to give up her gem so that the kid can exist." Amethyst summed up. "Oh, and that kid's name is Steven. Which is this little dude here." She said, pointing to Steven.

**"You?" **

"Yeah, it's true. See?"

Steven lifted his shirt to show the pink gemstone that once belonged to his mother and Meldar's former ally.

**"So you're a hybrid? How's that even possible?" **Meldar questioned.

"I don't know." Said Steven, shrugging his shoulders.

"So, big guy. Whatcha been doing the entire time you've been in that chest?" Asked Amethyst.

**"Regaining my strength." **Said Meldar.

"And?"

**"That's it." **

"Sounds boring."

**"That maybe true, but I couldn't exactly do anything while in a weakened state." **

"Well now you _can_ do anything!" Steven said with enthusiasm. Then he gasped when he got an idea. "I can show you around Beach City!"

While Steven was practically jumping with joy with stars in his eyes, Garnet and Pearl were a bit more hesitant of the idea.

"Steven, I know it _sounds_ like a good idea to show him around town and introduce Meldar to the people of Beach City, but..." Pearl paused for a second, trying to find the right words.

"Meldar could unintentionally cause a panic throughout the town if they see him." Garnet finished.

"Aw man." Said Steven, disappointed.

"Oh c'mon guys, what's the worst that can happen? It's not like they're going to form an angry mob when they see him." Said Amethyst.

**"I agree with the purple one. It's better to make my presence known now than later." **Said Meldar.

"Yay!" Steven exclaimed in happiness.

**"But first, let me shrink down so that way anyone that sees me doesn't have a heart attack when they see my full size." **Said Meldar.

"Works for me!" Said Steven, the smile never leaving his face.

"I still don't think it's a good idea." Said Pearl.

"Let them go. We'll see what happens and go from there." Said Garnet.

Pearl sighed in mild defeat.

"If you say so."

...

**And done! **

**Man it's taken me so long to get this chapter out. **

**Then again, my focus is currently elsewhere. **

**I apologize that it's so short, but I couldn't think of anything else. Plus I wanted to get this chapter out of the since it's left me stumped for awhile.**

**So until next time, Reptile out!**


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